California

THOUGHTS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF ALMOST DYING

NOTE: I woke up this past Monday morning, opened up my laptop ready to hit “Publish” on this post when I read about the tragedy in Las Vegas.  As I write this, there are 59 people who will never have a chance to write a blog with such a title. And so I was embarrassed to post it. But we, the living, are still in possession of this precious gift called life and we all…

New Jersey

I FEEL KINDA SICK (part 3)

It was Friday night, 9pm, and my heart and lung alarms went off for the second time. My sister Brenda and Aunt Julie who were gathered around me aborted their conversation mid-sentence. Brenda looked helplessly at the red flashing on the screens above me and then at me. There was nothing she could do but wait for the CCU nurse to come tearing into the room with emergency protocol, just as he had done…

New Jersey

I FEEL KINDA SICK (part 2)

When last we left things, I was in the Critical Care Unit in a New Jersey hospital having been diagnosed with Legionnaires Disease. I had been admitted Sunday, and by Tuesday evening I was not making much progress. Because of the severe congestion in my lungs, lying down at any angle, however slight, was painful and made it even harder to breathe, so I sat propped upright in a chair day and night.Up to…

New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C.

I FEEL KINDA SICK (part 1)

As the saying goes, life never turns out as we planned  Wonderful things can happen quite unexpectedly, and terrible things don’t check with our calendars before descending upon us. The same is true of road trips. No matter how long you’ve been planning it or how detailed said plan is, no amount of hotel apps, plan Bs, or travel hacks can prepare you for everything. I expected there would be changes to my…

Colorado

THEY CAME WHEN THEY WERE CALLED

Many people gave me a bunch of “must-see” places in Colorado, but I had three different groups of friends to visit in and around the Denver area and wanted to spend most of time there. It would take over 8 hours drive from Santa Fe to Denver and I didn’t want to do it in one day. After many weeks on the road I am convinced that miles in fact get longer at…

New Mexico

ART, MORE ART AND “CHRISTMAS ON THE SIDE” (Santa Fe, part 3)

NOTE: Sorry for the long delay between my last post and this one. Something quite significant happened on my travels, and it kept me from my laptop these past two weeks. Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait to read about until I can catch up blogging about the cities in between. For now, here is the final installment of my time in Santa Fe, New Mexico.When last I left you, I was holed up…